Essendon coach Brad Scott cannot believe his luck as yet another two players went down with serious injuries amid a crisis at the club.
The Bombers fear Nic Martin ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during Saturday night's loss to Richmond, while midfielder Will Setterfield has suffered a serious foot injury.
"This is incredibly tough news for Nic and for the entire club," Essendon General Manager of Football Daniel McPherson said.
โHe's been a vital part of our midfield this season, and his absence will certainly be felt. Our players, coaches, staff, and all Bomber members and supporters will feel his loss. He's had a terrific year and has been critical to our ability to perform week in, week out."
The club also confirmed that Setterfield will be sidelined for the remainder of 2025.
Scans will reveal the extent of both injuries, as Scott says the club's injury toll is beyond "flattening".
"I can't think of a situation like this in my time in footy," Scott said.
"Nic Martin has almost certainly done his ACL, that just sends a shiver down everyone's spine at quarter-time when that word ripples out.
"And (Will) Setterfield, after losing (Jye) Caldwell to surgery last week, Setterfield looks like he's got a pretty serious foot injury as well.
"It's a tough situation, but we just have to find our way through it."
"Nic Martin's almost certainly done his ACL." ๐
Brad Scott spoke post-game on injuries his side sustained against the Tigers.#AFLTigersDons pic.twitter.com/y8FSC1VSdR
โ AFL (@AFL) July 12, 2025
The pair of injuries comes as the club has already debuted 12 players, nearly topping Fitzroy's record of 13 in 1991.
In a great show of mental strength, Martin is already leaning on AFL examples such as Will Ashcroft as he looks down the barrel of a long stint on the sidelines.
"In times of adversity, you build resilience," Martin said ahead of his scans.
"I've got Will Ashcroft in my head, how quickly he returned and found form straight away. All you can do is take one day at a time and just get better."
โIโve just got Will Ashcroft in my head, how quickly he returned and found form straight away.โ
Incredible perspective from Nic Martin - in for scans on his suspected ACL this morning. https://t.co/Q1PB6VDNj8
โ Mitch Cleary (@cleary_mitch) July 13, 2025
A dozen players sit on the sidelines, with six players having already been ruled out for the remainder of the season, with Sam Draper (Achilles), Nik Cox (concussion), Zach Reid (hamstring), Nick Bryan, Tom Edwards and Lewis Hayes (all ACL injuries) out of action.
A further half dozen are pressing their case for a return before the season ends, but all have varying timelines.
"We're trying to be positive and put on a brave face, which is what you need to do as a leader, but it's getting hard to deny it's not flattening what's happening at the moment," Scott said.
"The ripple effect is it has so many challenges, it's not just the players that aren't there, it's the players that come in - they've never played together, and it ends up looking like, not a lack of effort, but a complete lack of synergy and connection.
Nic Martin has been subbed out of the game following this incident.
Zak Johnson is in.๐บ Watch #AFLTigersDons on Ch.504 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/nPJbyGKu6C
โ๏ธ BLOG https://t.co/IwLmHsRRlY
๐ข MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/cNf4fBzF12 pic.twitter.com/WCCUh1J9akโ Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) July 12, 2025
"Rookie players making rookie errors, which is understandable.
"The most important thing for us is to just fight our way through it and deal with the circumstances that are in front of us at the moment and not try to dwell on what we haven't got and focus more on the privilege of playing AFL footy."
The Bombers' nine-point loss to the Tigers places them 13th on the ladder, but with the third worst percentage (76.5 per cent) in the AFL, topping only Richmond (64.6) and West Coast (63.9).
Their last victory ironically came against Richmond in Round 11, and they have lost six on the trot, with clashes against GWS and the Western Bulldogs to come before July is over.
